


An Army Of One

by Kosho



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age II, Dragon Age: Inquisition, Dragon Age: Origins, Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anders Being Anders, Androids, Cassandra Pentaghast's Disgusted Noises, Cassandra is So Done, Confident Cullen, Confident Cullen Rutherford, Cybernetics, Dalish Accent, Dalish Elves, Dalish Issues, Illegal Activities, Inquisitor Being an Asshole, Mages, Mages Use Tech, Modern Assassins, Omnics, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Other Ships Not Mentioned in Tags, Overwatch - Freeform, Sassy Inquisitor, Soldier Enhancement Program, Tags Are Hard, Tags May Change, Technology
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-20
Updated: 2018-04-20
Packaged: 2019-04-25 06:15:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,412
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14372676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kosho/pseuds/Kosho
Summary: Elise Lavellan has finally been caught in the act, setup in the middle of a sting operation, she has two options: Go to prison, probably for life, or join Overwatch.





	An Army Of One

**Author's Note:**

> So this was the result of a conversation with my friend (SonyaBlackMane, go check out her fics <3 ) and some observations I noted between characters in Dragon Age and Overwatch. Elise is something like a hybrid between Hanzo and Sombra, since I couldn't really draw equivalents. Otherwise, I realized if I made Varric the Hanzo character, Genji would almost have had to be Bartrand, and no. 
> 
> Let's give this a go.
> 
> Also, I took a bit of creative liberty on this, sorry. In addition to omnics, there will obvi be demons too.

 

Well, this was certainly a first. Waking up in a room, no idea how or why? Not ideal, but if the woman in front of her was any indication, she’d been caught finally. Moving to stand up, she frowned, trying to get a decent look. Yep, nope. Cuffed to the chair. Old fashioned kind, nothing for it but to try and talk her way out of whatever trouble she was in. The woman waved another over to her, looking over an obviously intentionally bloated file. No one had that much dirt on her. 

 

“So what am I here for?” She asked dryly. 

 

“Seems you have a lot on your sheet.” she said quietly. 

 

She smirked slightly. “You’ll notice they’re only  _ links _ . Nothing ever proven. Guessing if you had any proof, you’d tell me.” 

 

“Leliana?” she asked. 

 

“Connected to several smuggling operations, bribery, blackmail. Theft. Several links to bodies.” she said. “Even for killing your  _ brother _ .” 

 

“That’s not…” she began, shaking her head. “Those files were closed. As I said, nothing more than possibilities. Mind telling me what this is  _ really _ about?” 

 

“Your accomplice gave you up. You’re responsible for the attack on that factory. Don’t deny it, we have video evidence, if that’s not enough, your modifications are illegal.” Leliana said. 

 

“You know very well elves are governed by their own law, you can’t do anything to me.” she sighed. 

 

“Well  _ Fader _ ...or do you prefer Elise? Lavellan?” the first woman said. “You were picked up outside the borders of your clan’s land.” 

 

She stared at them seriously. It was definitely a risk, but she was among the very best at what she did. Nothing she couldn’t get into like it was child’s play, tracks always meticulously covered. It never crossed her mind she might actually get caught. Still, she’d seen enough. Her people never got justice in human lands, the implants alone would put her away much of a human lifespan. Combined with her heritage? She’d be lucky to see the sun again. 

 

“So what now? I imagine you march me off to prison. Probably maximum security. At a guess, you’ll try to frighten me with the prospect of life behind bars, but we both know I won’t finish out the year.” she said seriously. 

 

“Cassandra?” Leliana said, nudging her arm lightly. 

 

“We’re prepared to offer you a choice.” Cassandra said. “A person of your talents could be of more use elsewhere, wouldn’t you say?” 

 

“I _would_ say. I’d say anything that got me out of this, but I’m sure you already knew that.” she muttered. 

 

“We suspected you’d see reason. Put your skills to work for our organization. Find a place of  _ real _ merit, and we’ll forget all about this little incident.” Leliana said. 

 

“Blackmail then...now I see. I work for you, you let me go. I say no and you turn me and your evidence over. Not much of a choice at all, is it?” Elise said. “Whatever. Get these off me and give me the damn Kool-aid.” 

 

“This isn’t a cult.” Cassandra said indignantly. 

 

Leliana moved to stand behind her, unlocking the cuffs, though she realized she wasn’t in the clear yet. Bolting wasn’t going to be an option now. They thought ahead, placed restrictors directly on her wrists. As joined with the implants inside of her as she was? These piddly things  and the miniscule electric impulses were more than enough to interrupt any functions that might have been useful. Her bow was across the room by the wall, and beyond being able to get to it and fire off any shots, they’d just enter a lockdown that she couldn’t bypass. Cassandra shoved a small kit in front of her. Now it was obvious. Give them the means to ensure she wasn’t planning on backing out of this, and they’d remove them. Problem was, this was as good as a contract with no loopholes. If she did this, there was no backing out of it. 

 

Rolling her eyes, she put her hands down on the flat screen, capturing samples of her DNA, her finger and palm prints and by the slight prick against her index finger? A blood sample too. A small capsule floated up, scanning her retinas before returning to the edge of the kit. A prompt asked her to submit her signature verbally and in writing. She wrote it down first, not too keen on the idea of someone having access to her genuine voice. Much of her business was conducted using an artificial variant, and with the interference, she couldn’t access anything. 

 

“Elise Lavellan.” she said. “Authorized.” 

 

Cassandra gestured to the door. “Well? Let’s go.” 

 

“Where are we going now?” she asked warily. 

 

“You’re going to see the man in charge.” Leliana said. “We give him the results, arrange your physical, and then he’ll want to see a demonstration. Get a feel for the sort of things you can do. He’s also the one with the authorization codes for those.” 

 

Well, they were certainly in for a surprise then. She hadn’t originally left her family in search of any upper hand she could get her hands, or...well, various parts of her anatomy, on for nothing. The things she could now do were a massive asset to those willing to pay for her services, and more often than not it had nothing to do with her peerless skill in combat and more for her more exotic abilities. This outfit seemed awfully official to be any sort of mercenary company. Government? Covert ops? It wasn’t until they passed a window overlooking the seemingly tiny courtyard that she realized several things. First, that they had to be at least a hundred, maybe even two off the ground, and second, this wasn’t just  _ any _ organization. She had somehow crossed  _ Overwatch _ . That was as good as pissing off the entire world, considering that it was a magnet for operatives around the world, official as hell. This had the feel of a setup. Her contact had to have been an undercover agent. She fell for a bad lead...that stung the most out of the entire situation.

 

It felt like the halls stretched on forever, before they finally came to a stop. Pushing open the door, she followed behind, the man shuffling papers into piles on a polished wooden desk. He looked up for just a moment, before doing a double take. 

 

“Commander.” Cassandra said by way of greeting. 

 

“I suppose I don’t need to ask what you’ve decided.” he said distractedly. “Just set it right there. Get her to the medbay for a physical, I’ll want detailed records of what exactly I’m supposed to be working with here.” 

 

“Yes, sir.” Leliana said. “This way.” 

 

So far so boring. She’d heard boogieman tales of how frightening Overwatch was, how far reaching they were. Elise definitely expected fire and brimstone, and instead she was being shuffled off for _paperwork_. Already this was beginning to feel less like a challenge and more like a bunch of stuffy bureaucrats pushing pencils. Hell, maybe even _this_ was just a formality. Just a way to get her into a suit and behind a desk like some receptionist. What a waste of priceless tech. It wasn’t until the door to the medbay opened, and a busy-looking blonde man glanced up from his notes. He smiled kindly, and she stared for a moment. He wasn’t nearly as fetching as the Strike Commander, but he was far from unattractive. How long had it been since someone smiled at her like that? 

 

“Please, have a seat.” he said. 

 

Elise sat gingerly on the examination table, dealing with the usual basics, testing her blood pressure, pressing on her stomach, a loud gasp of protest escaping at the chill of the stethoscope he pressed against her chest and back, breathing as he instructed. He ran a rolling thermometer across her brow, making notes. He helped her down long enough to check her height and weight, taking her measurements, to her curiosity. 

 

“I don’t remember this being part of a typical physical.” she snorted. 

 

“Well, you understand this isn’t really a  _ typical _ physical.” he reminded her. “Before you get the wrong idea, this is for any uniforms you might need.” 

 

“ _ Sure _ .” she cooed teasingly. 

 

“ _ Anyway. _ ” he said with a quiet cough. “Let’s see what we’re working with here…” 

 

“Doctor, are you insinuating something?” she joked. 

 

His face flushed slightly, and he hurriedly grabbed a tool she hadn’t seen before. “Not at all. It’ll help if you tell me where to look.” 

 

The thought of taunting him a little more crossed her mind, but she decided to at least try to be a little serious about it. She tapped her brow, the back of her neck, by her eyes, her arms and her legs. Maker, he’d never heard of someone with so many enhancements. It was a wonder she had lived through them, the tech was illegal for good reason. It was made for machines, for something more akin to androids than flesh and blood. Integration into a living body was not something that was approved for even the most basic of testing. Someone clearly must have felt proud of what they had done to her, but according to her vitals, she was in rather good health, exceptional almost. 

 

“Lift your hair for me, Elise?” he requested. 

 

“You never told me what to call you. Doctor seems so cold and impersonal.” she said with a grin. 

 

He cleared his throat again, watching the way she took her time raising her hair away from the nape of her neck. “Anders is fine.” 

 

“Anders…” she repeated, closing her eyes for a moment. “Be careful. My neck is very sensitive.” 

 

He rounded the table to her back, his eyes widening for just a moment. The metal hole in the back of her neck was clearly artificial. No sign of stress or infection, but he had to admit he wasn’t sure what, if anything was meant to go in it. It seemed an odd thing to plug a living being in like a lamp. 

 

“What is this for, do you know?” he asked. 

 

“For my sleep, obviously.” she sighed. “My brain doesn’t shut off anymore. I can’t sleep like I used to. I’ve been wondering if they intend to bring it here or if I’m doomed to be awake indefinitely.” 

 

“You don’t sleep on your own?” he wondered. 

 

This was entirely new to him, he knew omnics didn’t need sleep either, with some entering what could loosely be compared to a rest mode on a computer. Hell, this had to be new for everyone. 

 

“I’ll make a note of that. The Strike Commander will take care of it, I’m sure.” he said. “What about your forehead?” 

 

Elise rolled her eyes slowly. “Not my forehead, it’s interlaced with my brain. They extend into my eyes. Hence the odd color.” 

 

“And...those do…?” he asked. 

 

“Many things. I can see with my eyes closed, I can conceal myself from sight, there’s not a lock I can’t get into, nothing I can’t hack into, well, almost nothing. For obvious reasons, I don’t want to reveal all my tricks. A lady has secrets, you know.” she laughed. 

 

“How about this.” he said, handing her a pen and a blank piece of paper. “Write down whatever you’re comfortable with sharing, and I’ll transpose it into your file.” 

 

“I’ll do you one better.” she offered, but refused to elaborate. 

 

She swept her hand in the air in front of her, taking only a few moments to think before she entered a password. He wasn’t sure what to make of it until he realized that what she was typing against the empty air was the information he asked of her, directly into her file. He’d have tried to lecture her against it, but he had a feeling if even Commander Rutherford didn’t intimidate her into being on her best behavior, then she certainly had no intention of listening to him either. 

 

“There you go. Updated.” she said when she finished, sweeping the screen away. “I don’t regret what I’ve done. It helped my family, it gave me what I needed when I needed it. I knew it was a risk, and I never once claimed to be proud of the things I’ve done, only that I did what I had to.” 

 

“Seems like you do feel guilty about something. Otherwise why would you feel the need to justify it to me?” he laughed, louder when he saw the dismayed look on her face. “Between us...We’ve all got things we’re not proud of. No one is here because it’s what we wanted. We’re here because we’re needed.” 

 

“I’m here because I didn’t want to die in prison. My motivation is far more selfish than you must think.” she huffed. 

 

“We’ll see, won’t we?” he said ominously. “Either way, I’ll get this sent back to the Commander, and you’ll be free to go. I’d imagine your quarters should be ready by now.” 

 

“My...quarters?” she asked quizzically. 

 

“Everyone has assigned rooms. Even you.” he said. 

 

Elise hopped off the table, heading for the door. She paused, turning to look at him for just a moment. “Anders.” 

 

“Hm?” he hummed. 

 

“The Commander...what’s his deal? He always like that?” she asked. 

 

“What? Face buried in paperwork?” he wondered. “No, but he has a lot of responsibilities that demand his attention. I’ve made it known he should take plenty of breaks, eat frequently and exercise often, but I have no idea if he’s even thought to listen to me.” 

 

“Good to know. Later, Doc.” she said, disappearing completely from view. 

 

The only hint of where she went that he had was the opening and closing of the door. She seemed more intent on trying to catch people off guard, or shock them somehow. Mentally, it seemed like a distractionary tactic to avoid something she didn’t want people finding out, a way to keep people at arm’s length. He knew the type well, and for as dangerous as she looked on paper, the list of tenuous connections to large and small scale crimes and events? Even unproven it suggested she was someone to be cautious with. He wouldn’t go that far. She wasn’t particularly malicious based on his assessment. She hadn’t answered the full question though, he knew there was more she was hiding, but there was no way to force her to answer it completely. 


End file.
